A total of 264 verified commercial sexual exploitation child victims (CSE children) were identified in calendar year 2015, more than the 170 identified from July 2013 through December 2014. CSE children are to be placed and served in specialized residential programs, such as safe houses and safe foster homes. However, there are a limited number of these beds and provider criteria exclude some children. Providers report that they deliver consistent statutorily-required services to children, and the Department of Children and Families (DCF) is conducting a review of literature to identify effective interventions for CSE children.

Many CSE children we identified in our previous report had since been re-victimized, involved with the criminal justice system, or only attended school intermittently.

State agencies, including DCF and the Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ), continue working to better identify CSE children through community awareness, training, better information system tracking, and a new screening tool. The Human Trafficking Screening Tool has been released for use but concerns exist; DCF and DJJ should prioritize getting feedback on the screening tool and validating it.

What were our earlier findings?Report No. 15-06State and Local Agencies Are in Initial Stages of Addressing Needs of Child Victims of Commercial Sexual Exploitation,published in June 2015.